Agro Processors' |
Food fortification,
Grain Marketing Board commercial activities and fertiliser availability
are issues high on the agenda of the agro processors meeting to be held
tomorrow.
The meeting comes
before the law for mandatory fortification commencement date set for
July 1. The agro processors are meeting under the banner of their
umbrella body, the Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe.
The GMAZ members
will also discuss issues around the Command Agriculture Winter Wheat
programme which is targeting a yield of at least five tonnes per
hectare.
The programme is
targeting 70 000 hectares and already 881 farmers with hectarage of more
than 56 000 hectares have been registered by end of March.
Winter wheat
production is expected to surpass 280 000 tonnes boosted by the over 14
000 hectares which private sector players have committed to contract.
On GMB commercial
activities, the millers will discuss the rehabilitation of the silos, to
which they are investing about $8 million. Apart from investing in the
rehabilitation of silos, GMAZ have also committed to off take 800 000
tonnes of grain from the Specialised Maize programme, Command
Agriculture.
All members,
affiliates and associates of GMAZ, including grain traders, millers and
stockbreeders will attend the high level meeting. Several sector
stakeholders will interrogate a number of issues bedevilling the
industry such as fertiliser issues.
However, heated
debate is expected on fortification where GMAZ has been engaging
Government seeking for an indefinite suspension of the mandatory food
fortification programme.
The millers argue
that they would be forced to meet new costs of about $20 million to
import equipment and machinery for the fortification of the country's
four main food commodities namely sugar, cooking oil, maize meal and
flour which are consumed by about 99,9 percent of the population.
They further argue
that if Government proceeded to force through the July 1 mandatory
fortification commencement date the sector would be forced to fork out
no less than $7 million monthly for the importation of fortificants used
in the fortification process.
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